Generally, the inability to translate auditory stimulae into stimulae that activate non-auditory senses limits access to and use of sound signals. For example, the sensory inaccessibility of warning and other action-prompting sounds to individuals with hearing impairment compromises their safety, security and comfort. Current warning devices require connecting a light or vibration device to a sound source or to a user in order to stimulate a user's senses. These devices are based on direct contact between device and source or device and user, or on captors and high-frequency transmitters and receivers to make a distant lamp flash or a pager vibrate, and do so in response to one specific targeted sound, such as a sound emanating from a smoke alarm on a particular smoke detector. Current devices are limited to producing a discrete sensory signal in response to a discrete and periodic sound event and do not transform real time continuous sound information into real time continuous visual information that can interpret complex and progressing sounds. Current devices also do not provide real time perceptible, recognizable and interpretable visualization of these complex and progressing sounds.